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| Ravi Coltrane Signs With Ted Kurland Associates  Ravi Coltrane, John Coltrane's son, has signed to the Ted Kurland Associates agency for booking in all territories except Europe. Prior to this exclusive signing, TKA has booked Ravi as a member of the Alice Coltrane Quartet with Jack DeJohnette and Charlie Haden. A true renaissance man, Ravi is at the forefront of the restless few who are carving up new paths within jazz. "This is what jazz sounds like now, " exclaimed Ben Ratliff, of the New York Times. "A modernist who has absorbed a wealth of jazz, " wrote Down Beat, but also noted that Ravi is anything but a musical archivist, as "those influences are couched so well, resulting in a unique sound, best described as 'elusive beauty.'"When he first had thoughts of starting his group, Ravi sought to put together a working band of members who could actively contribute originals and contribute on all levels, intellectually, musically and especially improvisationally. With Luis Perdomo on piano, Drew Gress on double bass and E. J. Strickland on drums, the Ravi Coltrane group has found their shared creativity has energized both live performances and recording sessions. Ravi, born the second son of John and Alice Coltrane in 1965 was named after the Indian sitar legend, Ravi Shankar. Since he began playing clarinet in Middle School, Ravi has fronted a variety of jazz line-ups, recorded critically-hailed albums as leader, produced recordings by other artists -- including his mother; worked as a sideman for jazz luminaries, overseen critically acclaimed jazz reissues and founded an independent record label, RKM Music. Over the past few years, Ravi has also been sought after as a speaker and panelist for his extensive -- some have called it "encyclopedic" -- knowledge of music and musical history. His charismatic presence, prevalent when onstage playing music, is key to his talks on music, breathing life into the scholarly panels. Ravi has also been able to inspire the next generation of musicians with his visits to Universities and public schools around the United States. Ravi's latest album is entitled In Flux released on the Savoy Jazz label. The straight-ahead performances on this album were what inspired Mr. Ratliff's declamation of where to head to find jazz now. TKA is already accepting offers for Ravi Coltrane for the 2006 - 2007 Season. write your comments about the article :: © 2006 Jazz News :: home page |